Media & Marketing: A series of advertising campaigns for the Special Olympic World Games staged in Ireland last year are among the front-runners to scoop the top prize at the 2004 Advertising Effectiveness Awards, which will be presented tomorrow in Croke Park.
DDFH&B-JWT entered three Special Olympics case studies - support an athlete, the volunteer programme and the sponsorship campaign by Bank of Ireland.
Organised by the Institute of Advertising Practitioners in Ireland (IAPI), the awards are held every two years in Ireland and are based on the British model developed by the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising to provide advertisers with case studies on how media campaigns can add a difference to the value of a brand.
Unlike other advertising awards, agencies must provide substantive data with their entries and are judged on success factors such as return on investment, sales and increased awareness - and not just aesthetic values.
Nine agencies have been informed by IAPI that they are in the running for the four categories, from which one will win the grand prix.
Among the contenders in various categories are McCann-Erickson for Heineken Green Energy, Hunter/Red Cell for Roche Consumer Health's Berocca vitamin supplement and Cawley Nea\TBWA for Barnardos.
Young Euro RSCG will hope that its case study for the advertising campaign to support the launch of Tayto Honest snacks can repeat the success of the brand's packaging which won Dynamo the grand prix at this month's annual Graphic Design Business Association design awards.
Irish International BBDO is in contention in the long-term category for its donor campaign for the Blood Transfusion Service.
In the same category, QMP Publicis entered the "Nico" anti-smoking campaign for the Department of Health. McConnells entered campaigns for Eircom, Tesco and the National Lottery.
The keynote speaker at the awards ceremony will be Mr Josh Mandel, head of planning at 180 Amsterdam, the Dutch agency which has created a long list of award-winning Adidas campaigns, featuring Real Madrid's David Beckham and Zinedine Zidane, Arsenal captain Patrick Vieira and Juventus star Alessandro Del Piero.
The awards jury was chaired by Professor Tony Meenaghan of the Smurfit School of Business at UCD. He was joined by Mr Michael Caraher of the Association of Advertisers in Ireland, Mr Des Byrne, Behaviour & Attitudes, Ms Catherine Bent, CB Consulting, Ms Helen Marks, Vodafone and Mr Hamish Pringle from the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising in London.
Past grand prix winners include Irish International BBDO for the Sunday Independent, Cawley Nea\TBWA for Club Orange and Young Euro RSCG for Bulmers Cider.
Agencies pitch Cawley Nea\TBWA has won the Batchelors' food account after a pitch which involved Irish International BBDO and the incumbent, Grey Helme. Batchelors was bought earlier in the year by Barry's Tea from Northern Foods.
Apart from the Batchelors flagship range of canned fruit and vegetables, brands include Sqeez, Fox's Biscuits, Green Giant and Lavazza coffee.
The Hibernian Insurance review has made progress and marketing manager Mr Tony Delaney said that it had invited presentations from six agencies from which the list would be narrowed down to three hopefuls. These agencies will then make full creative pitches. The incumbent is Irish International BBDO.
Irish International BBDO is also one of four competing for the € 4 million Meteor mobile phone account, along with Owens DDB, QMP D'Arcy and the incumbent, Chemistry. A decision on the review is expected before Christmas.
The EBS is continuing to see agencies as part of its review of creative services, currently provided by McConnells. Mr Brian Sparks of Agency Assessments, the consultants handling the review, declined to comment on claims that four agencies had been short-listed.
TG4's new account
TG4 has appointed QMP Publicis to handle its account for a three-year run starting next February. The contract was out for public tender and among the other agencies which presented were Hunter/Red Cell, along with WPP partner, MindShare and incumbent MCM Communications, the media division at McConnells.
TG4's airtime sales contract was also up for review. Post TV, part of Thomas Crosbie Holdings, has been re-appointed. But some good news for McConnells this week is that the agency has been retained by Bus Eireann, after a final contest with Irish International BBDO.
Pender takes reins
Mr Liam Pender, former media director of Cawley Nea\TBWA, has become managing director of media independent, GT Media. Agency founder, Mr Graham Taylor, is now chief executive. There is speculation in the industry that Mr Pender has taken a stake in the agency.
Pender's appointment follows last week's announcement that Cawley Nea\TBWA's co-founder, Mr David Nea, is to leave the agency soon.
Michael Cullen is editor of Marketing magazine
